Practice psychometric tests
& University admissions tests
Graduate selection test? University admissions test? UKCAT? LNAT? Before you take the plunge you can find free psychometric test & questionnaire practice questions on many of the websites listed below. Using this material will not transform your abilities but it will increase your confidence. And the more confident you are, the more questions you will attempt and the better your results are likely to be.
Who uses tests? Psychometric testing is becoming increasingly common with up to 75% of medium to large sized organisations, and 95% of FTSE Top 100 companies, using tests or questionnaires during the recruitment process. Psychometrics, such as personality questionnaires and 360-degree feedback systems, are also playing a growing part in graduate and managerial development, appraisal and training.
What do tests measure? Tests are typically used for graduate or managerial level selection with verbal, numerical and abstract (non-verbal) reasoning being the most frequently assessed abilities. Personality 'tests' (questionnaires) are used less and tend to be administered at the interview, or Assessment Centre stage, after candidates have been sifted on the basis of their test results.
They are often used to assess the so-called 'Big Five' personality factors (O.C.E.A.N).
Tell me about the Big Five. Personality questionnaires provide information on how open we are to variety and new experiences (Openness),
our consistency of performance and level of self-organisation (Conscientiousness),
the way we relate to other people & the world (Extraversion),
our tendency to value feelings and cooperate with others (Agreeableness),
and the ways in which we control tension & emotion ('Neuroticism').
What gets used the most? Looking at those employers that use psychometrics, the chances of encountering different types of tests and questionnaires are:
Note: The percentages are not mutually exclusive.
How are tests administered? Tests and questionnaires are traditionally delivered in paper-and-pencil format, or via a PC, and of course online psychometric testing is also becoming standard practice. However, the results from such 'remote' administrations are usually corroborated at the interview stage by additional tests and exercises.
Testing people with disabilities. If you think there are reasons why you may be disadvantaged by the use of psychometric tests you can look at the SHL best practice guidelines, or seek advice from the excellent RNIB (visual problems) and BPS Testing Centre (Dyslexia) guides.
University tests. A number of universities are employing tests such as the Law National Admissions Test (LNAT) and UK Clinical Aptitude Test (UKCAT), in addition to examination results, personal statements & interviews, to select candidates for competitive degree programmes such as law, medicine, dentistry and veterinary science.
University admissions tests are similar to those used in commercial settings, but may include knowledge-based components, or more specialised assessments such as the Decision Analysis Test (DAT). The DAT, which looks at how well a person can make informed judgements in situations of increasing complexity & ambiguity, is used in the medical school entry test, the UKCAT.
Useful books. One of the most popular books is How to Master Psychometric Tests (4th Edition). This is a good primer for anyone who wants to know about tests and to have access to plenty of practice material. For more great books, by a variety of authors, go to my
Amazon bookstore.
There are also many freely available articles on tests & testing, just try one of the organisations below.
Practice & example tests, online questionnaires and assessment centre exercises. All the websites provide useful material. However for graduate & executive assessment you may wish to start with those flagged: G; for university entrance: U (& the separate section at the bottom of the page); and for self-development: S. For more basic tests of aptitude and skill, try: B.
Graduate jobs! If you wish to purchase practice tests because you are applying for a graduate scheme, or a graduate job, the verbal, numerical and abstract ability tests available via Dr Test are a useful starting point - these tests are used in graduate and medical school recruitment.
A number of people have contacted me to say that they have 'road tested' the following books which are particularly helpful for applicants to medical school.
All are available from Amazon, but make sure you buy the latest editions! Some, such as Getting into Medical School, are revised each year.
Career in Medicine: Do you have what it takes? by Rameen Shakur
Getting into Medical School by James Burnett
Medical School Interviews by George Lee & Olivier Picard
The Insiders' Guide to UK Medical Schools by Sally Girgis et al.
For all these medical books, and more, go to my Amazon bookstore.
Job sites. A selection of useful & informative job 'boards' & information sources:
Gradcracker (..and one for the engineers!).
General. Some sites that contain background articles on all things psychometric, intelligence, aptitude & personality related:
The Times Online (Surprise yourself..).
About this page. The list on this page was compiled by Dr. Mark Parkinson. Mark is a leading Chartered Occupational Psychologist, Test & Questionnaire Designer and a Press Spokesman for the British Psychological Society (BPS). He advises businesses, not-for-profit organisations and universities on assessment, selection and development matters.
For the more technically minded many online tests are distributed by the Performance Assessment Network (Pan). So if you're interested in psychometric testing and using tests & questionnaires in a professional context this is a good place to start. However bear in mind that reputable tests are only available to trained individuals. Details from the BPS Online Testing Centre
. Also if you would like to know
how psychologists or employers link personal attributes to assessment methods, look at the Rapid Assessment website; and for those interested in becoming a management consultant, try
Consultancy Links.
Report a broken link, or a new site that you would like to see listed. Current number of live sites = 178.
Webmasters. To have a site considered for inclusion it must contain some free and/or obviously useful practice material. It is also usual for a reciprocal link to be made to this web page.
Disclaimer. Mark does not control the contents of the sites listed, excepting Dr Test (www.drtest.co.uk), and all links are provided in good faith. Those that are listed were found to contain useful practice tests, questionnaires or other material at the time of their inclusion. No guarantee can be given with regard to current contents or affiliations.
